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Half Ashed Episode 114: Unbanded 024

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Unbanded 024

A traditional 6.5″ x 42 Lonsdale vitola with a slightly green tinged claro wrapper and a simple triple cap. The wrapper appears “dry” and mildly toothy.

News

TL Johnson and La Tradicion Cubana have – from all outward appearances – parted ways amicably.  This was announced by posts to both companies’ social media accounts.  TL Johnson will additionally be opening a factory in the Dominican Republic to manufacture their own cigars and the Counsellor line that was announced this past year.  They will also be providing manufacturing capacity for custom cigar production as the need arises.

Casa Fernandez and relative newcomer Warped have announced a new cigar to be released at this year’s IPCPR.  The Futuro is being promoted as something “different” from what the two companies might normally offer…although with a Nicaraguan puro using most or all criollo and corojo from the late 90’s I’m not sure how much of a departure this will actually be for Casa Fernandez.  I love AGANORSA, but it’s not exactly the most diverse profile in tobaccodom.  It will be available in 2 vitolas – a 6×52 Futuro Seleccion 109 and Seleccion Suprema (5-⅝”x46).  400 boxes of 20 for each vitola will be made available at the show, with future production possible as well.

The numbers are in.  The Cigar Association of America’s annual report (via Cigar Aficionado) for cigar importation into the US shows a pretty flat year in 2014.  Both Dominican and Nicaraguan imports dropped, with a slightly larger Dominican reduction…but neither are significant.  What’s interesting is the slowed import flattening for Nicaragua.  You may remember a mere two years ago that Nicaragua was poised – at its then-current rate – to overtake the DR within a couple years.  They’re holding strong at second place, only separated by a few million sticks…but the growth has stalled for the past year.

The L’Atelier Cote D’Or has begun shipping.  It debuted to a soft launch a few months ago, but has begun showing up nationwide now.  It’s a 7×47 soft pressed churchill (the only vitola), and has a production run of 2100 boxes of 10.  It uses the Ecuadoran Sancti Spiritus wrapper (Same as the Seleccion Speciale from L’Atelier), over Nicaraguan internals.  I picked up a few of these this week, and we’ll feature it soon on the show.  It’s a bit of a step out for L’Atelier with its $15-ish price tag, as most of their lines fall in the typical “sweetspot” we so often talk about.

Erik Espinosa will be relaunching the Murcielago blend.  Originally, this was an EO Brands line, produced by My Father.  Through all the splits, Espinosa retained the rights to the name, and says he thinks he has reverse engineering the blend to be the original.  The only blend details are a Mexican San Andres wrapper over Nicaraguan binder and fillers.  Pricing has not yet been announced…and I’m more than a little piqued at how this blend will be and how it will compare to the original….since it was made by My Father at a time when they used AGANORSA tobacco.  I’d like to know the details of how they have reconstructed it.  Who knows?  Maybe it’ll be a dead match.  It just seems bold to declare an exact match.

What Else We’ve Been Smoking

Craig

Pipe tobacco!

CAO Midnight Ride

Margate

Kip

Asylum Insidious – Ec CT over Honduran fillers; made at CLE’s El Aladino factory.  Might not have tried this one had I known its makeup…but I’m glad I did.  The sweetness provided a nice surprise, with only some bitter notes toward the very end.  With a 6”x52 going for about $4, it’s a win in my book.  I’d  not resist having a few around, but it wouldn’t be a frequently smoked stick for me.

On Dale’s recommendation, I gave the Camacho Triple Maduro another try.  Why do I keep doing that?!?  Tight draw, wonky burn – which, in unison, created a weird “solvent” kind of flavor I didn’t care for.  Made it about ⅓ of the way through the robusto.  Still not my cup o’ tea…although it once was.

Next Episode

In the next episode (115), we will have special guest Bob McDuffee.  Kip and Bob will be smoking the Ashton Symmetry.  So come by Friday night and hang out with us in the chatroom during the show.  If you would like to contact us in the meantime, you can reach us via the Contact Page or the following emails: [email protected] or [email protected]. Please feel free to drop us a line if you have any questions you’d like answered, comments to make…or even compliments and complaints.  We love to get your emails!  Also, remember you can always go back and listen to previous episodes, which can be found in the Half Ashed Archive.  You can download this week’s audio directly below (right-click “Download” and save), find us on iTunes, or subscribe with any podcast app at our RSS Feed.  Video, as always, will be available at the Half Ashed YouTube Channel.

P.S. – If you have unbanded suggestions or contributions, you can get those to us by sending an email to [email protected].  This email address goes directly to my wife, so you can simply suggest an unbanded cigar for her to source, or [email protected] if you have something you’d like to send in.  I will provide an address to send them.  Thanks!

 

TL Johnson and La Tradicion Cubana to Part

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TL Johnson La Tradicion Cubana

Long time friends of Half Ashed Luis Sanchez (La Tradicion Cubana) and Terry Johnson (TL Johnson Cigars) have decided to part ways, with TL Johnson to found a new factory in the Dominican Republic.  The news came from TL Johnson first on May 9th, with the following announcement on the company’s Facebook page:

T.L. Johnson Cigars is no longer part of the Cuban Tradition Cigar Group. We have decided to part ways with the Cuban Tradition Cigar Group and open our own factory in the Dominican Republic. We will be rolling all T.L. Johnson Cigars as well as Counsellor Cigars and will be taking on producing private label cigars as well. We are exciting about our new endeavor and producing the best quality cigars as you have come to expect from T.L. Johnson Cigars.

Earlier today, I received a subsequent message from Luis Sanchez of LTC, relating the following:

After 3 -years working with Tabacalera LTC in Dominican Republic and La Tradicion Cubana in Miami and being part of The Cuban Tradition Cigar Group., TL Johnson Cigars has decided to branch out and open its own cigar factory. We at Tabacalera LTC, La Tradicion Cubana and The Cuban Tradition Cigar Group are happy that as a result of the great product we produced for TL Johnson Cigars, and the market exposure we provided, they are now able to go out on their own. Just like a parent is proud and wishes only the best for their child, so we at Tabacalera LTC, La Tradicion Cubana and The Cuban Tradition Cigar Group wish TL Johnson Cigars ‘long ashes’.

The two have been partners in a joint farming venture in Villa Gonzàlez, Dominican Republic for the past two years, and La Tradicion Cubana has rolled TL Johnson cigars since 2012.  Terry was a guest on Episode 021 of Half Ashed

Half Ashed Episode 111: Crowned Heads Single Action

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crowned heads jdh single action

Crowned Heads JD Howard Reserve Single Action

One of several 2015 LE’s from Crowned Heads, the Single Action was an addition to the JD Howard Reserve line.  Only about 2,000 boxes of 10 cigars were produced, and the cigar carries an MSRP of $9.25 per cigar (and they’re still out there if you’re interested).  It is a 6×38 petit lancero, featuring a Brazilian Arapiraca wrapper over Ecuador Sumatran binder and Nicaraguan fillers.  The line is produced by EP Carrillo in the Dominican Republic.  Carrying with the JD Howard theme, the cigar is named after Jesse James’ weapon of choice – the Colt Single Action.

News

I got some info on a new line from Luis Sanchez this week, called the Figurado Series.  It will initially be available in a single 5”x54 “Chulo” vitola, and two different wrappers -Ecuadoran (natural) and San Andres (maduro).  Filler leaf will include some of the tobacco grown by Luis and Terry Johnson at their DOMUSA farming operation in Villa Gonzalez, DR.  I did not get pricing information, but it should be stateside in the next couple of weeks.

AJ Fernandez is extending the New World line to include a Connecticut wrapped version.  The New World Connecticut will feature an American-grown CT shade wrapper, Mexican San Andres binder, and a filler mix of Nicaraguan and Brazilian leaf – which is very different from the standard New World (“Dark Nicaragua” wrapper over Jalapa binder and a filler blend of Viso Ometepe, Condega ligero, and Estelí-Finca Soledad ligero, and “Dark Nicaragua” wrapper).  It will be available in four vitolas – Corona Gorda (5.5×46), Robusto (5×50), Toro (6×52), and Belicoso (6×54).  Pricing will be in line with the existing New World lineup.

Following our recent mentions of a few pipe tobacco related items, I’m happy to report that Pete Johnson is working on some blends himself.  He posted up a pic of something he was smoking this week and commented that he was working on something new.  He said he hopes to have something by the tradeshow.  I asked where his focus might be in terms of the types of blends he was working on, and he said “Plan on more English and some English with some aromatic twists.”  If that’s the case, I’m all in for trying them out.  I’d love to see this project take on life.  I really hope he’s actually creating blends from the ground up, and not going through a bulk blending house and just mixing off some existing compositions.  Pete’s history, palate and following could really make this a boon to the pipe tobacco industry.  Time will tell…

A few weeks ago, we talked a bit about La Flor Dominicana’s novel idea for having TAA members vote on this year’s TAA LE with their pocketbooks.  The gathering is over, orders placed and a winner selected.  The winning cigar is the 5.5” x 52 robusto.  The line features an Ecuadoran habano wrapper, Mexican binder, and Dominican fillers.  MSRP is about $9 per stick, and it should arrive on retailers’ shelves in about a month – assuming you have a TAA member retailer in your neck of the woods.

Following the lead of several municipalities around the state, Florida’s capital Tallahassee is looking to make it harder on employees who smoke.  An intent has been announced to end the hiring of any tobacco users, and prohibiting tobacco/e-cig use in all govt owned buildings, vehicles, etc. – even during break times.  Hiring changes would go into effect July 1, 2015, while other aspects would be phased in over the next two years (including a $20 fee [and it’s not an increased insurance premium….it’s a fee]from employees’ paychecks if they smoke).

A follow up to a program we previously discussed called Cigar Sense. Back in November we (Craig) had some choice words for a few of the statistics they shared from a survey of 400+ cigar smokers they recently spoke with. We saw some irregularities and downright confusing data being thrown about and rightfully scratched our head when trying to make heads or tails out of it. That same organization has just today discussed that they are using a “control” group of over 1,200 cigar reviews to provide a database to help smokers pinpoint sticks that will line up with their palate. The rub here is that the program determines what will fit your tastes based upon what else you like. Check out cigarsense.com for some cool introductions into the program and to formulate some of your own opinions.

What Else We’ve Been Smoking

This is where we chat about our week in smoke…tune in to the show for full details about our experience with these (and more).

Craig

TL Johnson Legend Reserve 63 Maduro – I second what I said a couple shows back. Genius exemplified in a cigar.

Kip

LEAF by Oscar Connecticut.  I got this from Franky99 when he was down from the GWN visiting Tampa.

Nestor Miranda SS Exclusivo Regional –

Listener Email

We (finally) got around to an email series between Craig and listener “Cigar City.”  Craig fills us in on the exchange about David Garofalo’s recent trip report about his excursion to Cuba…

Next Episode

Next episode (112) we will be featuring the Southern Draw KUDZU, with special guest owner Robert Holt.  So come by Half Ashed Friday night at 9:30pm EST and hang out with us in the chatroom during the show.  If you would like to contact us in the meantime, you can reach us via the Contact Page or the following emails: [email protected] or [email protected]. Please feel free to drop us a line if you have any questions you’d like answered, comments to make…or even compliments and complaints.  We love to get your emails!  Also, remember you can always go back and listen to previous episodes, which can be found in the Half Ashed Archive.  You can download this week’s audio directly below (right-click “Download” and save), find us on iTunes, or subscribe with any podcast app at our RSS Feed.  Video, as always, will be available at the Half Ashed YouTube Channel.

P.S. – If you have unbanded suggestions or contributions, you can get those to us by sending an email to [email protected].  This email address goes directly to my wife, so you can simply suggest an unbanded cigar for her to source, or send me an [email protected] if you have something you’d like to send in.  I will provide an address to send them.  Thanks!

 

Cigar News: La Tradicion Cubana shipping Figurado Series

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la tradicion cubana figurado seriesLuis Sanchez at La Tradicion Cubana has provided more information on a new line he has arriving in the very near future.  Regular Half Ashed listeners will recognize Luis’ name from frequent mentions on the show whenever Craig and I have delved into our LTC supply.  Both Craig and I are fans of his work, and both regular purchase La Tradicion products for our own humidors.  For those interested, some of our favorites include the TL Johnson Tempio and most recently the La Tradicion Cubana Reserva Familiar…as well as the corona in his original La Tradicion Cubana line.    In June of 2013, we also featured the Tempio on Episode 021 when we had guest Terry Johnson on the show.

The new line is to be called the Figurado Series, and for the time being will only come in a singular 5” x 54 “Chulo” vitola.  As  is obvious from the series name and accompanying picture, it is a figurado.  Both a natural and maduro version will be available, and features the blend composition given below.

The wrapper will be either Ecuadoran (natural) or San Andres (maduro), with Dominican filler tobacco.  Interestingly, the filler tobacco was grown by Sanchez and partner Terry Johnson of TL Johnson Cigars through their DOMUSA farming company.  Their tobacco has begun to show up in a couple of their recent blends, and the operation has been in the works for the past three years.  How extensively the two will utilize their own tobacco in the future is yet to be seen, but based on initial results my interest is piqued to say the least.

The La Tradicion Cubana Figurado Series should be available to U.S. retailers’ shelves within the next couple of weeks.

la tradicion cubana figurado series

Half Ashed Episode 064: Fuente Surprise

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Fuente from CFC2014This week on Half Ashed, we’re smoking a very special Fuente cigar, given out at CFC2014.  Tune in to get the full details about it, but here’s a spoiler: we loved it.  We had quite a bit of news to cover, including items from FDA, General Cigars’ Dunhill, 1502 Cigars, Herrera Esteli, Drew Estate, Luis Sanchez, and a bit more trouble for former Swisher executive Alex Goldman.  We also discussed what else we’ve been smoking this week and several listener emails.  Keep ’em coming!

In an unfortunate turn, our latest attempt at revamping our chatroom experienced a setback at showtime, and we had to punt with the chatroom.  We will be back online with the chat this Friday night.  We’ve contracted with a provider to offload the server load to cloudservers, so we shouldn’t have any further difficulties.  Just follow the instructions on the front page of halfashed.com.  Thanks for checking in, and we look forward to you joining us Friday night!

Next week, our Cigar of the Week will be a very special cigar from Craig’s provided featured cigars, so be sure to check back in next Friday night at 9:30pm EST at Cigar Federation ****We will temporarily only have chat access on our Show Page on halfashed.com.  We have outgrown our previous chat, and it has been overloading the server and causing various and sundry issues with our hosting provider.  In fact, they shut down our site this week during the show.  I have installed a stopgap chat for the time being, but it will not frame into the Cigar Federation page.  We will remedy this as soon as possible.****, where you can catch us recording and participate in the chatroom.  If you would like to contact us in the meantime, you can reach us through the contact page or at the following emails: [email protected] or [email protected]. Please feel free to drop us a line if you have any questions you’d like answered, comments to make…or even compliments and complaints.  We love to get your emails!  Also, remember you can always go back and listen to previous episodes, which can be found in the Half Ashed Archive.  You can download this week’s audio directly below (right-click “Download” and save), or find us on iTunes to subscribe.  Video, as always, will be available at the CigFed Half Ashed Video Archive.

P.S. – If you have unbanded suggestions or contributions, you can get those to us by sending an email to [email protected].  This email address goes directly to my wife, so you can simply suggest an unbanded cigar for her to source, or send me an email to [email protected] if you have something you’d like to send in.  I will provide an address to send them.  Thanks!

News from TL Johnson and La Tradicion Cubana

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News from TL Johnson and La Tradicion Cubana

siembra logo small (2)Regular readers and Half Ashed listeners will know that I am quite the fan of TL Johnson Cigars, as well as many other cigars rolled by La Tradicion Cubana (if you’re looking for a recommendation, I’d go with the TL Johnson Tempio or LTC Corona…but you can’t go wrong with pretty much any of the products).  I spoke with Terry Johnson on the phone this week, and he has passed along the press release below, as well as some related pictures.  Terry (TL Johnson), Luis Sanchez (La Tradicion Cubana), and Juan Francisco Reinoso (former agronomist for Philip Morris International) have partnered to begin tobacco farming and processing operations in the coming days.  They will be growing tobacco for inhouse LTC production, as well as supplying other manufacturers.  The first year’s crop, a ’98 Criollo, has been planted and is slated for the Spring 2014 harvest.  You may remember that earlier this year Luis and Terry joined in the production of a cigar line, as well as combining their individual strong suits for production, marketing, and distribution.  Press release and pics as follows:

Press Release: Compañia de Siembra Hojas de Tradicion

October 23, 2013 (Santiago de los Caballeros, Dominican Republic) – 2013 will be hailed as the year it all started for Luis Sánchez, owner of Tabacalera LTC SRL, Terry Johnson, owner of T.L. Johnson Cigar Company and Juan Francisco “Pancho” Reinoso former agronomist for Philip Morris International with the announcement of their new Dominican farming operations and leaf company, Compañia de Siembra Hojas de Tradicion. The company’s immediate focus will be growing tobacco for combined in-house cigar production (Tabacalera LTC SRL) along with leaf production for sale. A leaf processing facility and brokerage firm is in the plans for 2014.

Planting has begun, with the first crop of Criollo98 for the spring 2014 season and expansion plans are in the works for mid-2014 season growing of Dominican filler, binder and wrapper leaf. Company agronomist Juan “Pancho” Reinoso brings on board 33 years of experience from Phillip Morris and will oversee daily farming operations. “We are pleased to have on board such an experienced partner, who is so greatly respected within the Dominican tobacco growers’ community”, said both Sánchez and Johnson.

Luis Sánchez plans to divide his time between US and Dominican Republic on a monthly basis to oversee the farming operations and to develop the processing facilities. Sánchez also plans to devote time to the expansion of Tabacalera LTC and its partnership with Cia. de Siembra Hojas de Tradicion. Sánchez brings 20 years in the cigar manufacturing industry (La Tradicion Cubana Cigars).
Terry Johnson will remain at the helm of the marketing /sales department of the cigar distribution company for the remainder of 2013 and thru 2014 with plans to work on developing relationships with International cigar manufacturers for the leaf company (Cia. de Siembra Hojas de Tradicion). Johnson has an extensive background in farming and ranching operations and will join the team on a quarterly basis in the Dominican Republic as a consultant for the farming operations.

Episode 022: Ramon Allones Petit Corona

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Ramon Allones petit coronaRamon Allones Petit Corona

Welcome back for another fun-filled, exciting episode of Half Ashed.  This week, we take a look at the 2002 Ramon Allones Petit Corona – one of Craig’s very favorite cigars.  He says,   “Since its discontinuation in 2002 the PC has remained a “special” cigar in my humidor. Its big brother the corona is viewed as one of the most saught after regular production cigars since the mid 90s. Both being made in small numbers, thus always maintaining the quality, both of these cigars are great. The PC is legendary.”  Tune in to the show to get both our full thoughts on this episode’s examples.

Industry News:

  • Oliva is making a machine-made cigar, to be released in various markets during the coming months.
  • As first mentioned last week on Half Ashed when we hosted Terry Johnson of TL Johnson Cigars, the news is out that he is moving some of his operations to Miami – and is partnering with Luis Sanchez of La Tradicion Cubana for a joint venture cigar brand.
  • Dona Flor has announced a special Limited Edition IPCPR release, as well as the fact that the Alonso Menendez line is now available in the US.
  • Yet another 7”X70, this time from Drew Estate.  They’re adding this to the MUWAT line, per Halfwheel.
  • Xikar has divested itself of its HC & Defiance Cigar brands….selling them to CI effective July 1. CI has agreed to current price protections to existing retailers through September 30th.
  • IPCPR starts a week from Saturday.  We’ll be doing….something….during the show, depending on internet connections, travel times, etc.
  • Well wishes and quick healing to Charlie Rutherford of Boveda, who had a terrible motorcycle accident last week.  I know the guys behind Boveda personally, and all are good people.
  • Finally, we held our giveaway for June’s prize packs of Michael Stewart’s home-blended, home-rolled cigars.  Michael Thomas and Steve Dorau were selected by random.org, and will be receiving those prizes.  Congrats, gentlemen!

Wrap:

We covered a good bit more during the show – various topics of interest this week, what we’ve been smoking, etc.  Tune in to get the entire story on those items as well.

Be sure you all come back next week for Episode 023, when we will be attempting to put a show together while Kip is in Vegas for IPCPR.  We will be featuring the upcoming Ezra Zion Eminence as our Cigar of the Week.  That show will likely be recorded outside our normal Friday night timeframe due to travel/show scheduling.  I will tweet/post the exact time and date once we finalize it.  In the meantime, if you would like to contact us, you can reach us through the contact page or at the following email addresses: [email protected] or [email protected].  Please feel free to drop us a line if you have any questions you’d like answered, comments to make…or even compliments and complaints!  Also, remember you can always go back and listen to previous episodes, which can be found in the Half Ashed Archive.  You can download this week’s audio directly below (right-click “Download” and save), or find us on iTunes to subscribe.

P.S. – If you have unbanded suggestions or contributions, you can get those to us by sending an email to [email protected].  This email address goes directly to my wife, so you can simply suggest an unbanded cigar for her to source, or send me an email to [email protected] if you have something you’d like to send in.  I will provide an address to send them.  Thanks!

News: TL Johnson & La Tradicion Cubana Joint Venture

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TL Johnson La Tradicion Cubana

[NOTE: Many of you who have been following this site for a while know that I am a big fan of both TL Johnson and La Tradicion Cubana (who now produces TL Johnson Cigars for Terry Johnson).  In fact, I have reviewed the TLJ Tempio, the LTC “American Born Cuban,” written a Cigar Spotlight on La Tradicion Cubana, and featured Terry Johnson on a recent Half Ashed Episode.  So, it will come as no surprise that the following news is exciting in my book.  In a move that we discussed on the aforementioned Half Ashed episode, Terry and Luis Sanchez will be partnering in a joint venture cigar brand, of which the name has as yet remained unannounced.]  Read on for full details:

Luis Sanchez of La Tradicion Cigars and Terry Johnson of TL Johnson cigars are excited to debut a new joint venture line of cigars that will release fall 2013. A limited release of the new blend will be available at the 2013 IPCPR in Las Vegas. The name of this blend is currently being withheld until release date.

The new blend will be available thru the Cuban Tradition Cigar Group Appointed Merchant Program only.  Details about the program will be available at the 2013 IPCPR Show.

The first production release will be a 6 x 60 with a genuine African Cameroon wrapper. Other details will be available at the show along with Pre-Purchases that can be made at the IPCPR.

“I am honored to be working closely with Luis Sanchez on our first joint release produced at the La Tradicion Cubana Factory. This is an awesome new blend with a new packaging and marketing format that will stand out in industry. Terry Johnson- TL Johnson Cigars

The Cuban Tradition Cigar Group based out of the 8th Street Miami, Fl. location will house all cigars produced by La Tradicion Cubana including La Tradicion Cubana, Jameson and TL Johnson brands. These current brands make up The Cuban Tradition Cigar Group.

TL Johnson Cigars has begun the transition of moving all operations to the Miami, Fl. location. The main sales office will remain in Colorado and handle sales for the Cuban Tradition Cigar Group.

Sales Contact:
Terry Johnson, President TL Johnson Distributors
[email protected]

2013 IPCPR Booths # 205-206-207-305-306-307

Episode 021: TL Johnson Tempio and Guest Terry Johnson

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Half Ashed Ep. 021: TL Johnson Tempio

Good day and welcome back for another fun-filled episode of Half Ashed.  This week, we host Terry Johnson of TL Johnson Cigars.  Terry sits in for the first hour of the show, while we smoke his fantastic Tempio and talk cigars, flyfishing (TL Johnson also produces fly rods), and other gentlemanly topics.  We then covered a few news items for this week, and some of the usual suspects in show segments.  Thanks for tuning in, and enjoy!

TL Johnson TempioFeatured Cigar

This week, we take a look at the TL Johnson Tempio, a cigar that I reviewed last year and smoke on a regular basis myself.  I had a suspicion that Craig would enjoy it just as much as I.  I was right.  Produced for Terry by Luis Sanchez at La Tradicion Cubana, the Tempio is chocked full of sweet cedar, mild citrus, and toasty oaken flavors.  As is the case with Luis’ other production, the Tempio never disappoints in terms of construction and consistency.  Definitely worth seeking out a retailer that carries the line – or requesting them from your local shop.  It features a Pennsylvanian wrapper, draped around a Dominican and Nicaraguan binder/filler blend – and is fantastically flavorful.

Industry News

  • Legislatively, the only news we cover this week is the recent development for the FDA in beginning to exercise more power in controlling product introduction into the marketplace with regard to tobacco products – denying 4 of 6 requests for new cigarette products.
  • In cigar news, we go through a small portion of the IPCPR news this week concerning new cigars to be launched in the near future – notably, the Casa Fernandez 35th Anniversary and Reserva Maduro, a special release from Espinosa for CHATWEETUP2013, and other offerings from Royal Gold (produced by Drew Estate), Pinar Del Rio, George Rico (GAR), and House of Emilio.
  • We also cover the departure of a familiar face at My Father Cigars, and recent acquisition of Heavenly Cigars by Drew Estate.

What Else Have We Been Smoking?

Craig: Back to some Cuban roots this week

Kip: Sam Leccia’s Black & White

Miscellany

Family time with Craig, and a 3-day jaunt to South Florida for Kip – as well as a couple of listener emails for the week.

Wrap

Be sure you all come back next week for Episode 022, as we get into highgear leading into IPCPR.  That show will likely be recorded outside our normal Friday night timeframe due to the Independence Day holiday.  I will tweet/post the schedule once we finalize the timing.  In the meantime, if you would like to contact us, you can reach us through the contact page or at the following email addresses: [email protected] or [email protected].  Don’t forget to get those emails in this month to be entered in our current giveaway.  Also, remember you can always go back and listen to previous episodes, which can be found in the Half Ashed Archive.  You can download this week’s audio directly below (right-click “Download” and save), or find us on iTunes.

P.S. – If you have unbanded suggestions or contributions, you can get those to us by sending an email to [email protected].  This email address goes directly to my wife, so you can simply suggest an unbanded cigar for her to source, or send me an email to [email protected] if you have something you’d like to send in.  I will provide an address to send them.  Thanks!

Episode 008: Unbanded Number 002

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half-ashed-logo-trans1-300x134.pngWelcome to Half Ashed Episode 008, everyone!  Below is a quick summary of this week’s show, but be sure to download or watch/listen through any of the means in the final paragraph of this post!  [NOTE: I apologize for the audio snafu this week. I made some changes that created an echo in Craig’s voice for much of the show.  This was not noticeable while recording, but bothersome in the final cut.  I filtered the recording through a noise gate, but it is still largely present.  Please bear with us while we get these glitches sorted out, and be sure to come back next week when we should be back to normal!]

Half Ashed Cigar of the Week: Unbanded #002

This week’s featured cigar is our second Unbanded (blind) tasting on Half Ashed, and was recommended by Jeff Curtis.  The grand unveiling is detailed below.  If you would like to make a suggestion for future unbanded cigars, send an email to [email protected].  This address is monitored by my wife, who will have one of my local cohorts source the cigars.  If you have cigars you would like to submit, send me an email to: [email protected] and I will provide you with an address to send them.

Industry News this week

  1. Legislative Items
    • The Florida Outdoor Smoking Ban bill is still alive. The Florida Senate Regulated Industries Committee, by a unanimous 10-0 vote, advanced SB 258 that will allow Florida local governments to enact their own outdoor smoking restrictions. If you’re in Florida – you NEED to take action here. It only takes about ONE minute, and can be done online while sitting at home with a good cigar.  You can submit messages to your representatives at the CRA page set up for that.  Simply follow the instructions for the automated process.
    • One listener (Dan Crouch) proposed an idea that we have kicked around and will likely feature on a future show.  We will have one of our fellow cigar smokers from a less tobacco-friendly locale come on the show and talk about life on the other side of the prohibitions and stringent legislation we are seeing put forth in the US today.  We all need to take this quite seriously if you value your freedom to enjoy a fine cigar.
  2. New Cigar Availability
    • News from KC Johnson about the upcoming L’Atelier LAT44 Maduro release
    • The Crowned Heads Headley Grange has begun shipping in five vitolas.
    • According to EPC’s Facebook page, 2013 Short Runs start shipping next week. Only 5,000 boxes made.
    • The AVO Dominant 13 we talked about a few weeks ago, and featured here on The Cigarmy is landing….if you plan on picking some of these up, they usually go fairly quickly.
    • As reported by Halfwheel and has lit up Twitter, the popular CyB from Joya de Nicaragua will be available in a lancero format to TAA member retailers.
  3. General Cigar has once again won a battle for US Trademarks on Cuban cigar marques vs. Cubatabaco
  4. Butthead’s Tobacco – where we sourced the Serie V Sampler we’ll be basing our first vertical tasting from – posted a picture of the event-only Nestor Miranda Blue Label.  Craig and I share our thoughts on event-only, retailer-only, and other special edition limited cigars.

What else have we been smoking?

Craig

    • La Aroma de Cuba Mi Amor Reserva – This is a spectacular cigar. Flavors are a bit nuttier & sweeter than the typical Mi Amor. I am a proud Mi Amor lover and this cigar is a terrific addition to the line. I want a box.
    • Craig also discusses a rather unique cigar he’s smoked this week, rolled by a listener, Michael Stewart, who sources whole leaf tobacco and has been experimenting and rolling his own cigars…Michael will be on an upcoming show to talk more about his unique hobby.

Kip

    • Herrera Esteli from Willy Herrera (NOT to be confused with Frank Herrera’s Biography).  I picked up a couple of these at Corona this past week while waiting for my parents to arrive at the airport. Crazy good construction; uniform color; perfect draw; pleasant, oak and spice flavors w/some nuttiness; lots of nasal spice, but somehow I liked it in this cigar.  Wrapper: Ec Habano, Binder: Honduran, Filler: Nicaraguan. Around $8/stick.
    • The full range of Tarazona/Cubanacan Cigars in robusto/rothschild, which I documented in a Cigar Spotlight earlier this week.
    • LAT52 from L’Atelier – Ecuadoran wrapper (Sancti spiritus = a hybrid of Criollo and Pelo de Oro); Nicaraguan filler/binder; very unique, sweet cold draw; leather, nuts, slight sweet cedar; citrus on rare occasions throughout. Dig it!  Retail from $7-8
    • TLJohnson Tempio – after trading some messages with Terry this week, I went and dug out one of his Tempios, which I reviewed back in December.  Just as good as I remember… Dominican filler/binder; Pennsylvania wrapper; extreme box press; toasty, with healthy, regular doses of cedar intermingled with a sweet, charred oak.  in that review, I likened it to imagining sticking your head into a spent whisky barrel, and still would. Very good sticks in the $8 range, although not widely available yet.

Miscellany

  1. My Palio died on me this week.  I still think they are fantastic cutters, but I had some trouble with mine.  Although, come to think of it, I do use it far more than the average bear….
  2. Curiosity and idle thought got the best of me and I posted up a poll about peoples’ buying habits on The Cigarmy this past week. I’m very curious….
  3. We took some time to discuss one listener email this week:
    1. Steve Dorau asks about some trends he sees in cigars he purchases through online deals versus those same cigars in brick and mortar establishments.

Unbanded Unveiling

  • Check out all the details interspersed throughout the show to find out exactly what we thought about this week’s unbanded.  We both enjoyed the cigar, and I even lucked out and was correct about it seeming “Pepin-esque” to me…however, we were both caught offguard by which stick it specifically was – in fact, we talked about this cigar early in the show, not knowing it was exactly what we were smoking in a different vitola.  This week’s Unbanded was the Cabaiguan Guapos Maduro 46, from Tatuaje.  Thanks to Jeff for the recommendation.  It was a very good one!

Next week

Next week we feature the 2002 El Rey del Mundo Tainos as the Cigar of the Week – one of Craig’s favorites.  The following week, April 12th, we will have special guest Michael Stewart on the show to talk about how he sources whole leaf tobacco and rolls his own cigars.

Again, thanks for tuning in everyone.  Be sure to come back next week, when we’ll be taking a look at the ERdM, and hopefully will have all of our audio issues sorted out.  In the meantime, If you would like to contact us, you can reach us through the contact page or at the following email addresses: [email protected] or [email protected].  Also, don’t forget to go back and listen to previous episodes, which can be found in the Half Ashed Archive.  You can download this week’s audio directly below (right-click “Download” and save), or find us on iTunes.  Video, as always, will be available on our YouTube Channel.